The Lost Girls

A while back I picked up The Lost Girls and read the synopsis and I don’t know why but I was pulled in. This isn’t the type of book I usually go for but for some reason I couldn’t get it out of my head.

The Lost Girls by Heather Young is part thriller, part mystery and part confessionary tale. Nearing death, Lucy Evans–the last of the three Evans sisters–lays bare the story of her life, her family and the story of Emily. Six-year-old Emily Evans went missing in the summer of 1935. Her’s has been a cautionary tale and one that has followed the Evans family throughout the decades.

Now sixty years later, Lucy has passed away, leaving her lake house to Justine, a grandniece she met once almost 20 years earlier. Desperate to escape her manipulative boyfriend, Justine takes her eight and eleven-year-old girls and they move into the house. But things aren’t like Justine remembers. The house is old and in need of repair and the lake is no longer the bustling retreat it once was. The only other inhabitants of the lake are two elderly brothers; the place is isolated and the house is soaked in the past.

As Justine and the girls adjust to their new life, the truth about Emily’s disappearance comes to light, revealing a past that is dark, awful and much, much more than meets the eye. What happened to Emily? And what will become of Justine and her family?

This book is so hard to review because it is not a genre I normally read. I literally kept asking myself why I was reading it. That being said, it wasn’t a bad read–it just wasn’t my cup of tea.

One thing I will say about this book is that you know what’s coming and yet it is still a total surprise. Young basically takes you by the hand, she leads you down this path where you know what awful things are coming and still it’s a shock. One of those: “It can’t be.” “Please, no.” moments.

The mystery, whodunit moments in this book were really well done. Lot’s of different breadcrumbs to follow and looking back you find you had the answers all along. This is not something every writer can do.

I wasn’t a huge fan of the narration… well I should say, I wasn’t a huge fan of Justine’s narration. Lucy’s was great but Justine’s story was just not as interesting to me and as a character she fell kind of flat.

Overall, this is a book fans of Gone Girl and Girl on a Train would probably like. It has some similar elements, although it doesn’t quite get there. I give this book 3 stars, mostly because I am not sure how I feel about it. Not a bad read but not one I would pick up again.

Post navigation

Follow Blog

Search

Welcome

Welcome to my site! Librarians have to know a little about a lot. We are your one-stop-shops. Your jack-of-all-trades of the book world. That being said, things can get a little messy.

This blog is meant to be my own personal toolbox. A place where I can write down ideas and keep track of successes and failures. Feel free to riffle through my toolbox! I’d love to hear your ideas and am open to suggestions. ~Maranda